Just like A.J. Pollock was our sleeper pick of the
year for 2015 fantasy baseball, it was Baltimore Orioles outfielder/DH Mark
Trumbo who claimed that title for 2016.
What was ironic about us recommending Trumbo so strongly prior to last
season was the fact that we previously had no use for the guy during his years
with the Seattle Mariners and Arizona Diamondbacks. While we always appreciated Trumbo’s power,
his habitually ugly batting averages, penchant for injury, and pricey draft
price left us wanting more. What we
always stay true to however is that EVERY player is worth drafting if their
price falls far enough and that is what Trumbo presented leading into
2016. Adding to the intrigue was the
fact Trumbo was acquired by the Baltimore Orioles during the Hot Stove Season
as the move put the slugger back into a
prime power ballpark after languishing the previous year in spacious Safeco
Field with the Seattle Mariners. Instantly
Trumbo made us look very smart by putting forth a ridiculous March/April (6
home runs and a .337 average) which set the stage for a truly dominant season
with the bat. Trumbo would lead all of
baseball in home runs with 47 and he also would light things up as well in runs
(94) and RBI (108). The average remained
an issue at .256 but that should not have been a shock considering Trumbo
strikes out a ton (25.5 percent) which has been a career-long problem. With the draft
price now trending upwards off such a big 2016 however, we likely have reached
a point where passing on Trumbo is the right away to go as you never want to
buy players coming off a career-year. However Trumbo re-signing with the Orioles Thursday once again will put him on the path to possible challenge for the home run title in 2017 and clear 100 RBI with a decent amount of runs. Top outfielder 2.
2017
PROJECTION: .251 35 HR 98 RBI 88 R 1
SB
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